From Finishing School to Piracy
by Daddy Elric
Summary: [AU] Not only was she about to be out of this place, but she was going to her mother's brother. Roy Mustang, quartermaster of a pirate ship. The Duchess.
1. From Finishing School to Piracy

This idea's been floating around in Our head for a while, so... -shrug- It appeared on paper today at school. xD Pirates! Again! xD

**Disclaimer**: Don't own! Song is 'Kryptonite' by Three Doors Down.

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Light poured into the window. The girl looked up, scowling at the other females who were cavorting around the vicinity. This was finishing school, and for Rose Mustang, this was life. For now.

She sighed, turning away and beginning to step down the stairs. She'd been constantly thwarting the teachers; wearing slippers to bed, throwing things, sitting on other ladies, the works. And all to get out. She wasn't supposed to be part of this dignified world, and she didn't want to be. So when she stepped down the stairs, she deliberately tripped, sliding down in a blur of green silk and red hair.

The woman in charge for this particular class, a large woman with a snaggletooth everyone called Madam (the woman, not the tooth) because she didn't exactly disclose her true name, stalked over, a rather grotesque (in Rose's opinion) scowl on her face. "Rose," she said, as menacing as something with three chins and a blob for a body could be, "You've just blown your last chance. I told you before that you're much too rambunctious, and here you are jumping down the stairs. I hope you're glad that we're about to summon your uncle."

Rose stared. Madam probably took it as shock, or fear, but Rose was overjoyed. Not only was she about to be out of this place, but she was going to her mother's brother. Roy Mustang, quartermaster of a pirate ship. The Duchess. Long ago, she knew, her mother had been the captain, but now they had a new one. Some kid. She didn't really care about that. So Rose just nodded, trying to look disappointed. Madam, of course, jiggled in response. "Good," spat the older woman before waddling off. Rose watched her go, then shrugged and returned to her room to pack.

/ I took a walk around the world to ease my troubled mind /

The next day, there was a ruckus in the front grounds. Apparently there was an arrival. Rose, of course, was right out front, watching the man step out of the carriage with a rather dignified air. Was this really him? He had her complexion, and when you looked closely, you could see his eyes were dark blue, not obsidian, but other than that there were no real similarities. His hair was black, hers was rosy red. He had narrow eyes, as if he were Xinganese, but then again, her mother hadn't been. So he obviously wasn't, either, unless he was some bastard child, which Rose also knew he was not.

Despite the differences, Rose knew full well that this man was her uncle Roy. And it wasn't only the blatantly obvious fact that he'd come to the academy asking for her. It was also that this man reminded her of her mother. Kari had looked about as much like Roy as Rose did, but maybe it'd been their stance. Whatever it was, Roy was very reminiscent of her mother, and that was what made her trust her uncle the most.

/ I left my body lying somewhere in the sands of time /

So down she'd gone, out the door with a suitcase full of her worldly possessions. (These did not include, of course, the finery she'd been wearing only a day ago. Those belonged to the school.) The small girl had come out of the finishing school in a frock and some simple slippers, and never looked back.

Roy took one look at the girl in front of him, flashed his (trademark, though Rose didn't know it) smirk and lead her up to the carriage, where she sat and waited. She could see Roy drop a small pouch into the hand of Mistress Dickens (a tall, spindly woman who was the complete opposite of Madam in appearance and owned the school), who expected payment for feeding, clothing, and housing the girl for the three years she'd been there. Obviously Roy didn't care about losing such a hefty amount. Maybe he really _was _a pirate. After all, she only half-believed it.

The darkhaired man came back, seating himself opposite her. She stayed quiet, but got fidgety, and realized that Roy was staring her down. Looking up curiously, the girl asked uncomfortably, "What?" Obviously Roy hadn't realized he was staring, because he mumbled something about Kari and looked away. Of course, Rose was interested now. "What about my mother?"

Roy smiled distantly, looking out the window as if he were gazing at something only he could see. "You look a lot like her," he replied quietly. "It's a little unnerving. I'm sorry." He shook his head, then looked back out the window, leaning on his elbow.

Rose shook her head. "No, it's alright," she replied. "It's been said before. Anyway.. Where are we going?"

Roy's smirk returned. "The harbor, of course," he replied as if they were going on a picnic. "Where else?"

/ I watched the world float to the dark side of the moon /

And so they'd gone, in the elegant horse-drawn wagon with the man in the front sitting and driving the horses on. Rose had enjoyed watching the scenery go by, the hills becoming plains which became the moor. It was beautiful, the greens becoming blue and all the colors in between.

Finally, they arrived, driver hopping off the bench in front and coming around to open the door. Roy lead his niece out, and she stared around the harbor. People were coming and going, and a few drunks were staggering dangerously around the edge of the dock. There were vendors lining the place, standing in their small, flat boats and yelling advertisements at anyone who was unfortunate enough to walk past them, calling things like "Hey! C'mere! I've got rum!" or "Don' listen to 'im, 'is prices are way to 'igh!" Neither of the Mustangs, of course, cared much about them. They were going somewhere.

Rose noticed that Roy looked as though he was set on going somewhere. Looked to be toward a boat. However, instead of that, he took an abrupt turn and she nearly fell off the deck. "We need to go somewhere," was his only explanation. And off they went, back toward the small village.

/ I feel there's nothing I can do /

They walked slowly through the town, Roy reading the signs above each bar carefully. They walked past the Dancing Lion (which Roy deemed "too mangy" for whoever he was looking for to go to), the Orange Doppelganger ("Too expensive"), and finally they were standing in front of a rather lively one, even in the early evening. The large, carved wooden sign above the door read Ambrosia, and from the door spilled a beam of bright orange firelight. "Here we are," announced Roy. Rose looked at him in confusion, but the man simply strode in, looking around the bar. The redhaired girl trotted after him, puzzled. There didn't seem to be anyone around that her uncle would be looking for -- Or so she thought. So she thought, until he made a beeline for the woman who was sitting in the corner knocking back pint after pint.

This woman.. Rose could honestly say that she was very beautiful. Then again, with her hair pulled back in a loose ponytail so she didn't get any in her drink, and the color high in her face, you could only say that she was pretty when she was _sober. _Right now, she was just totally out of it, and it showed. Roy, on the other hand, didn't seem to care as he sat himself down in a stool across from the woman, waving a hand to Rose to tell her that she should sit down as well. "Hey, there, Riza," he said. "How long've you been here?" Obviously, he'd dropped any pretense of being dignified. He was a swashbuckler and that was all there was to it.

Riza hiccupped, looking up at him. "Wha' 'bou' you?" she asked, training unfocused mahogany eyes upon the darkhaired man in front of him. Shaking out the leather tie out of her long blonde hair, the gunner plunked her drink on the table, sloshing rum onto the already-sticky surface. Rose could bet that she'd spilt lots more than just rum on that table, regarding the multiple random-colored blotches on the table. Or maybe it hadn't been just Riza. Whatever the amount, there'd been quite the number of spills.

Roy smirked at his crewmate. "Just came to get you," he replied with a wave of his hand. "We're just about ready to sail. Got us a new crewmate, too," he added, jabbing a thumb in the direction of his niece. "Kari's daughter."

Riza was stunned. She blinked, looking the girl up and down. "Kari's?" she repeated. "You sure 'bou' tha', quar'ermas'er?" Rose winced slightly under the gaze. Whatever she'd been expecting from these pirates, it sure wasn't a check-out session.

"Of course," replied Roy, snagging Riza's mug while it was on the table and taking a long swig. Riza gave him a dirty look, but he just slammed it back on the table. "Needed that. Anyway.. Yeah. She's coming with us." And that, really, was all it took. Roy made sure to toss a couple of coins down on the table for whoever had brought the blonde woman her drink. "Let's go, then. Cap'n's waiting," said Roy, with a tone that suggested that this captain didn't exactly deserve his title.

/ I watched the world float to the dark side of the moon /

The group, which had just expanded to three, trudged back outside. It was just about sunset now; the sun was a little ways above the surface of the ocean and it was a bright orange. The dock was a little quieter now, except for in congested areas the small crew didn't venture towards. They just went back toward the ship, which from here looked like a large shadowy mass. However, when they got up close…

It was beautiful.

Rose had seen ships before. There was a river in the town the finishing school was located near, and when they were allowed into the village she'd often stand by the water and look at it. When she was small, there'd been a small river there as well, that the traders came in by. (She'd met a lot of friends that way, by hanging around the docks. Some who stood out especially well were a pair of small blonde brothers. She couldn't remember their names, or their faces, and she felt bad about it. But she knew she'd see them again.) This ship, on the other hand.. it was nothing she'd ever seen before. The only word to describe it was magnificent. The sails were obviously linen, and they billowed with the warm evening breeze. The hull was dark, with windows all up the back, and two poop decks rather arranged like stairs. There were portholes with glass, and cannons lined the level below the portholes. She could easily guess at the makeup of the insides based on this. Deck, residential, weaponry, bilge, and between those were the other rooms. There were four masts, and upon them were yards and yards of a fine linen she could guess the pirates had stolen. And atop the highest mast…

Atop the highest mast, in the birds' nest, sat what looked to be a boy around Rose's age. He spotted the approaching crewmates, and immediately shimmied down one of the ropes, coming to meet them. Large leather boots clomping on the wood, he trotted down the ramp and stepped right up. The boy was wearing a large hat atop a mop of messy blonde hair, which he'd pulled back into a loose braid. He was wearing a clean white tunic, a large-buckled leather belt, and dark pants. He was also rather short. He was actually the same size as Rose, and she was quite small, even for a girl. "And this is?" the boy questioned, looking at Roy.

Roy's face immediately split into a smirk. "My niece," he replied proudly. "Hands off, Ed."

Ed immediately began to laugh. "Yeah, yeah." He looked Rose in the eye, and immediately bowed deeply, smirking as he did and tipping his hat.

"_Captain _Edward Elric, at your service."


	2. New Friends and The Search Party

Funfunfun, piratepiratepirate…

**Review Replies: **

**Taisa**: xD What else could We do but have more pirate fun? Tas might be over there writing what happened in the _roleplay, _but We've got the new stuff covered. xD

**Rose**: xD A spoon? xD You only say that cause you think he's HAWT. xDD

**Disclaimer**: Don't own it! Song is "The Walk" by Imogen Heap.

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_Captain _Edward Elric? Was this him, then, the fabled "replacement" (as Rose had come to call him) captain? He didn't look fit to be leader of this bunch of misfits, but then again, the rest of them weren't all that pirate like either. She supposed that they got away with not looking like pirates by being deadly. So, in truth, Rose didn't really have a real reason why Edward shouldn't have been captain. She just knew he didn't fit the role. So when the boy introduced himself, she merely smiled and nodded. Better not to argue about it.

"So!" said Edward, as if he were concluding something. "Where's the rest of the crew?" He looked expectantly among the three that were there. "Armstrong and Havoc and Cook are missing, aren't they? And Rubens, too."

"We're right here," announced a mild voice. A hatch on the deck opened up, and a violet-haired man emerged, holding his hand out for the brunette that followed. The man turned, and Rose could see that he was wearing a pair of thick lenses with horn-rimmed frames above a pair of bright gray eyes. Shaking a bit of shaggy fringe out of his eyes, the man pulled up a girl. She looked to be around fifteen, unlike the in-his-twenties purple-haired man. A red streak stood out among her long chestnut locks, and the girl's eyes were a soft blue. "Sorry, we were talking downstairs," apologized the man, walking down the ramp. The girl followed. He looked at Rose, then blinked at Ed and Roy. "Who's this?" he quizzed.

"My niece," replied Roy, at the same time Edward said "Rose." They both looked at each other and scowled, but the gray-eyed man looked intrigued.

"Your niece?" he asked Roy, who nodded. "Kari's?" The darkhaired man nodded once more, and the other man looked rather excited. "I had no idea," he admitted. "Never believed Kari would have one. Then again, she always did like kids, and there _was_ that one she trucked around, lying how it was her cousin's--"

Rose cut him off. "Um… Mister…. Could you tell me…" She trailed off. There was so much she wanted to know, and it was hard not to just explode with questions.

/ No response on any level /

He blinked for a moment, then gave a sheepish smile. "Right," said the man. "Sorry. I s'pose you want a name, right?" When the girl nodded, he bowed shallowly. "Lookout-in-charge Alexander Connor Rubens, _the third, _at your service." He paused for a moment, then swore. "Elric, you're rubbing off on me." Ed stuck out his tongue at Rubens, but obviously Rubens didn't care. He nudged the girl beside him. "Introduce yourself," he told her.

The girl nodded, and stepped forward. Unlike the gunner, Riza, who'd been wearing pants rather like the men, the brunette was wearing a light frock, an apron, and sandals. "I'm Mina," she told Rose, smiling shyly. "I'm the cook." When she'd said her name, Ed had roared out "COOK!" in the hopes of drowning out Mina's voice. Obviously he wanted everyone to call her that. Rose, of course, had no intention of calling the girl "Cook", since she wasn't an idiot. Hell, Edward probably didn't even know Mina's actual name. Never could be sure with him.

/ Red alert, this vessel's under siege /

"So!" said Edward again, in that same tone he'd used before. "Where're Armstrong and Havoc? Anyone seen them?" Everyone else shook their heads, and Edward sighed. "We gotta find them. We'll split up in groups of --" He paused to count. "—Two. Rubens and Cook--" Mina sighed at the name; "—Mustang and Hawkeye, and I'll go with Rose here. Sound good?" Everyone nodded, and Edward went on. "Good. We'll meet back here in half an hour to see if anyone's found them. Got it?"

Rose watched everyone shuffle off in amazement. She'd had her doubts about Edward, that was for sure. Now, though, she could see why everyone was so loyal to him. (Later, of course, she'd probably realize that despite Ed's superior leadership skills and his title, Roy handled most of the crew's affairs.)

She was shaken out of her thoughts when the longhaired boy approached her. "Ready to go?" he asked, grinning mischieviously. Without waiting for an answer, he shrugged and strode off. Rose trotted behind, slightly startled. He looked back at her, smirking as they walked. "If we don't find them in the half an hour, and Mustang or Rubens does, one of them's going to rub it in all night. That's why we're going to." She looked at him for a moment, slightly confused, but nodded and followed.

/ Total overload – all systems down, they've got control /

Unfortunately for the other teams, the first person to be spotted was Armstrong, and Rose and Ed found him. He was having quite a fun time carrying barrels of rum for some old bartender woman. He spotted them, and approached. Rose stared up at him. She'd never believed someone could possibly be that _huge. _Apparently Armstrong was capable of it, because here he was, all six-foot-five of him, shoulders as broad as two and a half men, and he was carrying barrels of _rum. _The large man seemed to be staring at Edward, and his yellow mustache was quivering. Rose took that to be a smile, because the guy was rather sparkly. Finally the large man cried out "_Edward Elric_!" and immediately bear-hugged the little captain. Edward struggled for a moment, then finally let himself go limp. You could just about hear the joints in the blonde boy's back cracking.

The man dropped Edward, turning to Rose. "And who is this lady, Edward-kun?" he questioned. "Are you a suitor?" he asked Rose, who colored slightly. He leaned back, chuckling "merrily". Rose looked him up and down, taking in his appearance. The guy was enormous, as she'd figured out as soon as she'd seen him. His name fit him well. (As did Hawkeye's, but when she was drunk it didn't matter if her name had something to do with birds of prey – she was much too drunk to care about aiming.) He had no shirt – he didn't need one, because it would just rip – and he had a pair of fitted pants that he'd tucked into his boots. He had a pair of gauntlets strapped to his hands, spiked metal ones that he used in hand-to-hand. He was musing about something. Maybe it was the relationship status between Rose and Ed, maybe not. Whatever it was, the man shrugged and trained small, bright blue eyes on the pair, his small coil of yellow hair quivering. "So, Edward-kun, what are the current goings-on?"

Edward blinked for a moment. You could tell that he'd just about forgotten all about the search parties due to the bone-crushing hug he'd just received. Upon the question, however, he nodded. "We were looking for you and Havoc," he replied. "We found you, so… Have you seen Havoc?" He rather hoped so. It would be annoying to have to keep looking, but then again, they _had _decided to organize a search.

Oh, he was diverging.

/ There's no way out, we are surrounded /

Armstrong shook his head, obviously confused. "No," he replied. "I left him at the ship. He was supposed to have waited for your return. Perhaps he went to eat?" he suggested. "Even if you can't find him, he shall most probably turn up." He seemed to think this was the end of the conversation, because he began to shuffle off.

Edward stood still for a moment, then took a flying leap and clung to the man's back. Armstrong was rather startled until he realized what was going on. "You can't leave," Edward informed the man. "First of all, it's getting dark. And secondly, if I lose you, Mustang and Rubens are going to make fun of me if one of them finds you. So you're staying with us, thank you very much." He slipped off Armstrong's back, dusting himself off.

Armstrong just stared for a moment. (Honestly, even Rose had been startled, though not because of Ed's reasons for jumping. It was more the fact that Ed had simply launched himself on the big man's back.) He seemed rather fazed by this. "Er... Alright," said Armstrong finally. He had nothing else to do, anyway. Might as well stay, was Armstrong's decision on this one.

/ Give in, give in /

Half an hour later, everyone was simply standing around near the ship, pondering. No one had seen Havoc anywhere. It didn't make much sense, but then again, this was Havoc, and he was always getting lost in different places. Edward had been sitting on a barrel, chin in his hand, when he hopped off it and marched up the ramp to the ship. Rose followed, watching as he clambered down the hatch and walked off. She supposed he could have taken the stairs on the side, but Edward Elric wasn't such a good thinker when he was mad about something.

Ed came back up, and he was leading a taller blonde man, who'd been downstairs the whole time. The guy was smoking what looked to be a cigar, and it was giving off a strange colored smoke. His eyes were red-rimmed and slightly bloodshot, and Rose could guess that along with the smoke, it was _what _he was smoking that was making this man look like he'd been cutting onions or something. He had on simple attire, quite like the rest of the crew, and he was sporting a gun on his hip. (There were cutlasses in the storage, of course, but they only took them out when they were doing something. So right now no one was carrying one.) His hair was rather odd, Rose found, since had two tones to it, a darker, mud-colored bit and a lighter, blonder bit. Then again, she shouldn't have been surprised. Everyone was weird in this place.

So this was the infamous Havoc… He seemed to be rather giddy, and Rose attributed that as well to his cigar. Whatever he'd been smoking, it had to be some sort of drug. It was, of course, marijuana. Of course, Rose couldn't identify whatever the hell _else _was in the cut of the greens. Apparently Havoc's version of a high involved laughing at anything that happened to be in the vicinity.

Edward broke into her thoughts by standing up on the rail. "All right, then," he announced. "Shall we set sail? There's a whole chest of gold stamped with our names on it, and we're the ones who're going to get it." The rest of the crew seemed to like that idea. Ed's eyes slipped over to Rose for a minute, before he looked down at Mina. "Hey, Cook, get her some proper clothes. She's not going to be a maid, after all. She needs proper pillaging wear."

Mina's brow furrowed in confusion for a moment before she nodded, though she looked exasperated about the nickname. "Yeah, yeah," she replied. Obviously she wasn't as shy as Rose had thought. "I'll be sure to. Also, remind me to hit you with something next time you call me that."

The blonde boy blinked, obviously not realizing what she was talking about. "All right, then," he said finally. "First thing tomorrow morning, we set sail." He grinned. This was going to be quite the party, he knew already. And with a new crew member under their belt, there was about to be a twist to their usual seafaring, plundering party.

/ And relish every minute of it /

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Yeah, there you are. :3


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